Who pays for what? Repairs, damage and shared walls

Usually paid by the building owner

• Their own building work
• Surveyors' fees for the award, including yours in most cases
• Making good damage to your property caused by the work
• Making good your side of the wall after cutting in beams or removing a chimney breast
• Temporary protection, such as weatherproofing where your roof is opened up

When costs may be shared

• Repairs to a defective shared wall. If the wall needs repair because of its condition, not because of the new work, both owners may share the cost in proportion to their use.
• Later use of new work. If you later build onto or use a wall your neighbour raised or built, you may pay a fair share of its cost.
• Extra work you ask for. If you serve a counter notice asking for more, you normally pay for the extra.

How damage is settled

Damage is put right either by repairs or by a payment. Under section 11(8) you can insist on receiving the cost of the repairs instead of having the building owner's contractor carry them out.

Security for expenses

Before work starts, you can require security from the building owner: a sum held in case the work is abandoned or damage is left unrepaired. The surveyors decide whether it is appropriate and how much.